APOD: 2019 November 4 - Near the Center of the Lagoon Nebula

A late good morning, Rallypoint. Today's Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD) is titled "Near the Center of the Lagoon Nebula." The Lagoon Nebula (M8) is near the constellation Sagittarius. For those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, the optimal time for viewing Sagittarius and the Lagoon Nebula is from May through mid-September, so today's APOD is the best we will be able to do for now. When Sagittarius returns to the night sky, the Lagoon Nebula is visible unaided (although probably not in this great detail). The light that we see from M8 left about 5,000 years ago. The image here is approximately 50 light years across.